--- title: "Apple AirPods vs Audio-Technica: Which is searched more in the United States?" description: "Is Apple AirPods or Audio-Technica more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Headphone brands set in the United States. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time." canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/airpods-vs-audio-technica" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Apple AirPods vs Audio-Technica: Which is searched more in the United States? Is Apple AirPods or Audio-Technica more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Headphone brands set in the United States. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time. ## Key facts - **Compared**: Apple AirPods and Audio-Technica - **Competitive set**: Headphone brands - **Market**: United States - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Apple AirPods Share of Search**: 52.7% - **Audio-Technica Share of Search**: 0.35% ## Is Apple AirPods or Audio-Technica more popular in search? - In September 2026, Apple AirPods had more branded searches than Audio-Technica among headphone brands in the United States. Apple AirPods had about 1.5 million branded searches, while Audio-Technica had 9,900. Apple AirPods made up 52.7% of all headphone brand searches we track, and Audio-Technica accounted for 0.35%. - Apple AirPods was ahead of Audio-Technica in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Apple AirPods’ share of searches among headphone brands in the United States moved from 51.6% to 52.7%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 1.5M. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Audio-Technica’s share of searches among headphone brands in the United States moved from 0.62% to 0.35%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 18.1K to 9.9K. ## Top headphone brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Apple AirPods was mentioned in three out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Audio-Technica was mentioned in one out of five: in one of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in either of the two Google AI Overviews. Apple AirPods was listed before Audio-Technica in every answer that named either. Brands get a higher AI rank if they are mentioned earlier in the answers that list options. | Brand | AI rank | ChatGPT answers that named it | Google AI Overviews that named it | All answers that named it | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Sony | 1st | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Bose | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Soundcore | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Apple AirPods | 4th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Sennheiser | 5th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | JLab | 6th | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Beats | 7th | 0 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Audio-Technica | 8th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | JBL | 9th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | | Skullcandy | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Shokz | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Raycon | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Jabra | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Marshall | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | | Bowers & Wilkins | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about headphone brands - Asked ChatGPT "Which headphones should I buy?": 1. Sony, 2. Bose, 3. Sennheiser - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best headphone brands?": 1. Sony, 2. Bose, 3. Sennheiser, 4. Apple AirPods, 5. Audio-Technica, 6. JBL, 7. Soundcore - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best wireless earbuds?": 1. Sony, 2. Apple AirPods, 3. Bose, 4. Soundcore - Searched Google, AI Overview "headphones": 1. Soundcore, 2. Beats, 3. Bose - Searched Google, AI Overview "wireless earbuds": 1. JLab, 2. Soundcore, 3. Apple AirPods, 4. Bose, 5. Sony Not named in any answer: Skullcandy, Shokz, Raycon, Jabra, Marshall and Bowers & Wilkins. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United States on October 26, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for United States headphone brands in September 2026? - In September 2026, Apple AirPods gained share of searches among headphone brands in the United States, from 50.7% to 52.7%. - In September 2026, Audio-Technica fell from 11th to 14th among headphone brands in the United States. ## Month by month | Month | Apple AirPods estimated searches | Apple AirPods Share of Search | Apple AirPods rank | Audio-Technica estimated searches | Audio-Technica Share of Search | Audio-Technica rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 1.5M | 51.6% | 1 | 18.1K | 0.62% | 12 | | Nov 2025 | 2.2M | 50.2% | 1 | 27.1K | 0.61% | 11 | | Dec 2025 | 2.7M | 54.1% | 1 | 18.1K | 0.36% | 13 | | Jan 2026 | 1.2M | 45.9% | 1 | 22.2K | 0.84% | 12 | | Feb 2026 | 1.2M | 50.1% | 1 | 33.1K | 1.4% | 10 | | Mar 2026 | 1.2M | 49.5% | 1 | 22.2K | 0.9% | 11 | | Apr 2026 | 1M | 45.8% | 1 | 9.9K | 0.45% | 14 | | May 2026 | 1M | 45.8% | 1 | 12.1K | 0.55% | 12 | | Jun 2026 | 1M | 46.7% | 1 | 18.1K | 0.85% | 11 | | Jul 2026 | 1M | 46.6% | 1 | 18.1K | 0.84% | 11 | | Aug 2026 | 1.2M | 50.7% | 1 | 18.1K | 0.75% | 11 | | Sep 2026 | 1.5M | 52.7% | 1 | 9.9K | 0.35% | 14 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Apple AirPods’ and Audio-Technica’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading. - **Apple AirPods**: Measured on the search term “airpods”. - **Audio-Technica**: Measured on the search term “audio technica headphones”. - [Apple AirPods profile](/demand/us/brands/airpods) - [Audio-Technica profile](/demand/us/brands/audio-technica) - [All headphone brands in the United States](/demand/us/categories/us-headphone-brands): The set both shares are measured inside, 15 brands. ## Methodology - [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is Apple AirPods or Audio-Technica more popular in search? In September 2026, Apple AirPods had more branded searches than Audio-Technica among headphone brands in the United States. Apple AirPods had about 1.5 million branded searches, while Audio-Technica had 9,900. Apple AirPods made up 52.7% of all headphone brand searches we track, and Audio-Technica accounted for 0.35%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Apple AirPods vs Audio-Technica: Which is searched more in the United States?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/airpods-vs-audio-technica This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/compare/airpods-vs-audio-technica. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.